The post in the trip planning session inquiring about favorite lakes, had me pondering the why.

Is it your favorite because; Best Fishing, Most Scenic, Easy to get to, Scenery, great campsite, remote, waterfalls, lake size, remoteness, terrain, past memories or something you can't quite put your finger on?

For me when I think about the lake i'd say is my current favorite...it's certianly not the best fishing lake i've been too. It's scenic, but there are way better out there for sure. Campsites are decent, but again i've stayed at better. It's not the easiest to get too, but not terrible either. For me...it's more of a feeling, I just like it there.

Personally, its the scenery and then fishing a close 2nd.

Probably my favorite lake is Lynx Lake

Mine is mainly fishing (SAK) but love the water falls on the way there. Paddling through the eastern side with the high bluffs are probably the most scenic.

Definitely the scenery and remoteness ( Pageant lake). It does help that we've caught nice pike there too but the hike into and out of pageant is the most remote I've found in the BWs and just a gorgeous hike in general.

It's a combination of:

* The scenery (uniqueness or layout) - I love islands, elevation, overlapping points, overlapping focal points at different distances (like the close shore, midrange island, and distant hills) that provide perspective and scale, "frames" (like a tree tunnel with a view of a distant peak), bushy remote places that make me truly feel like I'm somewhere no one's ever been... lots of features to make something look cool.



* Fishing - it doesn't have to be amazing, but it's gotta be decent at least - but it's far from the only thing that would make a lake one of my favorites. It does bump things up quite a bit though if fishing is excellent.



* The effort it took to get there - our brains often think something is better if we had to work harder for it, even if it's just something we tell ourselves to feel like we didn't waste our effort. Some lakes like Lake of the Clouds and Adams are not easy to get to, and thankfully they're beautiful lakes in their own right, but there is an aura of mysticism around them as well given the required effort to experience them yourself. This factor is essentially remoteness, but focusing more on the effort more than the isolation (which I do love as well).



* My feelings about it at the time - Knife is definitely one of my favorites, but I had a pretty magical sunny June day in the South Arm, visiting Eddy Falls, smashing smallmouth on topwater, and frying up a few during possibly the best pink-purple sunset I have ever seen. It's memories like this that build up a mental image of favorite lakes, even if the mental image is different than the real one. I think this was perhaps my favorite day in canoe country.

^^^ beautiful Smallie !!!

I think there's something special about the first lake on the first trip. My first trip was to Moosecamp and it seems like an old friend when I go back through.

For me it’s always solitude. I love all the scenery and terrain but solitude over all else.
Tom

I can fall in love with any lake that has crystal clear water and is bordered by big pines and ledge rock. Beyond that, it’s spending time on it, creating memories and forming a bond with it.

For example, I live in Alaska just outside Denali National Park. Denali, the mountain itself, is majestic, iconic, beautiful etc but it will never be a favorite of any kind for me because although it has those other qualities it is not a place I would climb or spend much time on. Conversely the smaller mountains and ridges in my “backyard” are less grand but much more special to me because they are the places I’ve spent camping, hiking, picking berries, and watching wildlife etc. To really love something I need that deeper connection.

Wonderful topic! Just like an athlete, a lake’s intangibles can elevate its ‘rating’ from average to incredible or average to ehh. That list of intangibles is lengthy - maybe even endless.

tumblehome: "For me it’s always solitude. I love all the scenery and terrain but solitude over all else.
Tom"

We're here, as well. We appreciate all the scenery and geography of Canoe Country, but when a lake offers only the sounds of nature, it gets added to the favorites list. That doesn't mean we expect to have the lake to ourselves, but it means we're not hearing electronic devices or rowdy neighbors.

TZ

My favorite lake is one that is scenic, big enough to spend a whole day on, decent fishing, not too crowded, has access to multiple points of interest and has a good campsite with a view and a decent clearing.

The campsite is probably the most important factor. If I can't relax and enjoy some time out of the canoe, then the lake is just going to be a paddle through. Even it I'm spending 12 hours a day in the canoe, the time we sit back and relax is in the campsite. Some of my favorite memories are the lazy afternoons at camp where we just relax and play cards after a couple long travel days.

I have come upon some lakes that just hit me with a special awe. These have always been on Bushwhacking routes off the beaten path in Woodland Caribou PP. One such lake was in three non portages from any maintained route. A 5 star and then some campsite with lichen so thick you tried to avoid stepping on it. Buried in a 50 year old fire ring and obscured by the moss was an old billy can with homemade wire to hang it over the fire. The billy can was hung in a tree to preserve that precious reminder of an earlier time as a lake dubbed Billy Can Lake.



routes

Clarity of the water, accessible shoreline, and flat campsites.

A lake that I have to myself.

Good fishing and no people.

I find myself drawn to Crooked Lake and the Basswood River. I know it's busy but to me it's the perfect blend of scenery, water size and fishing.

I really enjoyed LLC but didn't care for slogging the Moose River to get there.

I'd like to go up and around from EP#14 but always leery about the wind.

To me: In a word, its the experience at a given lake. That involves a lot of the things people have written. Top underlying factors for me are solitude, remoteness, and I particularly like small lakes and interconnected waterways. Multiple experiences at a place also factor in - it becomes a good friend I get to see every once in a while. Thus, one of my favorite lakes, which is almost unbelievable to some, is Gotter. The Isabella River (and Rice Lake), Louse River (and Trail Lake), upper Kawishiwi River (with Square and Kawasachong Lakes), and Frost River are others. Any of the cluster of lakes between Knife/SAK, Ottertrack, and Saganaga. I know some of these are not remote, but the times of year I have been on them there has been solitude and most of the times few people. I won't name my favorite most remote lakes, but they are small and take some effort to get to.

It’s more of a feeling and memories than anything. It seems like my favorite lake varies from year to year :)

I posted a few days ago in my BWCA favorite lakes…then talked to my brother about previous trips and changed my mind…give me a few more days and I’ll change it again as I reminisce. So I guess it varies minute to minute :)

The scenery, the adventure to get there, perceived solitude, links to the past, fishing, water quality/clarity, the campsite uniqueness all play a role not sure I can rate one over another?

T

timatkn: "It’s more of a feeling and memories than anything. It seems like my favorite lake varies from year to year :)"

I agree.
Fishing, beauty, remoteness, difficulty, campsites, etc... My mind changes, after over 500 lakes. I do have several "very happy places".
It's like women.... After my wife (favorite ever !!), it's hard to pick out a favorite old girlfriend (but their weren't quite 500 ;) )

timatkn: "It’s more of a feeling and memories than anything. It seems like my favorite lake varies from year to year :)


I posted a few days ago in my BWCA favorite lakes…then talked to my brother about previous trips and changed my mind…give me a few more days and I’ll change it again as I reminisce. So I guess it varies minute to minute :)


The scenery, the adventure to get there, perceived solitude, links to the past, fishing, water quality/clarity, the campsite uniqueness all play a role not sure I can rate one over another?


T


"

Agreed! That last paragraph says it all. The only addition might be the tripping crew that you were with.

timatkn: "

The scenery, the adventure to get there, perceived solitude, links to the past, fishing, water quality/clarity, the campsite uniqueness all play a role not sure I can rate one over another?


T


"

Except for the "fishing", I would have been able to write that paragraph and be happy with it. And yet, as I have been thinking about this topic, I keep realizing that when anyone asks me what is my favorite lake, I always reply "Cherokee" very quickly. ,And I guess, for me, campsite uniqueness and links to the past are primary in that decision. We reached Cherokee on our "long trip" in 1992 at a time when I needed a beautiful place to sit on a rock and ruminate on the magnitude of what this trip was meaning for us. The "sitting rock" there was crucial for this goal.









We returned 10 years later on another good trip. By then Spartan1 was dealing with kidney disease and many aspects of canoe tripping were more difficult: keeping the diabetes under control, adhering to the brutal "kidney diet" (low sodium, low protein, low potassium). But my "sitting rock" campsite was still available and it was a highlight of what was a rather challenging trip in some additional ways (it was the "Friendly Fly" trip.) To be back there was like "coming home."









The ultimate goal of our 2012 trip with HoHo and David was "Return to Cherokee" because I wanted to sit on that rock one more time. And I was disappointed to find the campsite occupied, although we found a really nice campsite across the lake and we had a wonderful stay on Cherokee. Then we traveled up to Gordon and Frost (still traveling down "memory lane" for me and Spartan1, but new territory for our friends) and came back via Cherokee, hoping that it would be vacant. It was not. We asked permission of the people staying there to take a couple of photos and they agreed. We had enjoyed the campsite, but mainly I was the one who loved the sitting rock. And I knew I wouldn't return again. I have been to hundreds of BWCA lakes, as well as a few in Quetico, in Algonquin, and in Temagami. I have loved most of them. But my heart will always return to Cherokee.

Spartan2: "

I have been to hundreds of BWCA lakes, as well as a few in Quetico, in Algonquin, and in Temagami. I have loved most of them. But my heart will always return to Cherokee. "

What a great sentimental journey, Lynda--Thanks for sharing.

TZ

TrailZen: "

Spartan2: "

I have been to hundreds of BWCA lakes, as well as a few in Quetico, in Algonquin, and in Temagami. I have loved most of them. But my heart will always return to Cherokee. "

What a great sentimental journey, Lynda--Thanks for sharing.

TZ

"

Thanks Lynda, You've been an inspiration to remind us to keep doing what you love for a long as possible. My father-in-law once told us to always go on a real vacation every year. Many years all we could afford was to throw a tent and cooler in the back of the car and go across the country from campsite to campsite. We can't ignore advancing age completely, but we need to do what we can while we still are able. We can only regret what we haven't done.

Spartan2: "

timatkn: "


The scenery, the adventure to get there, perceived solitude, links to the past, fishing, water quality/clarity, the campsite uniqueness all play a role not sure I can rate one over another?



T



"

Except for the "fishing", I would have been able to write that paragraph and be happy with it. And yet, as I have been thinking about this topic, I keep realizing that when anyone asks me what is my favorite lake, I always reply "Cherokee" very quickly. ,And I guess, for me, campsite uniqueness and links to the past are primary in that decision. We reached Cherokee on our "long trip" in 1992 at a time when I needed a beautiful place to sit on a rock and ruminate on the magnitude of what this trip was meaning for us. The "sitting rock" there was crucial for this goal.










We returned 10 years later on another good trip. By then Spartan1 was dealing with kidney disease and many aspects of canoe tripping were more difficult: keeping the diabetes under control, adhering to the brutal "kidney diet" (low sodium, low protein, low potassium). But my "sitting rock" campsite was still available and it was a highlight of what was a rather challenging trip in some additional ways (it was the "Friendly Fly" trip.) To be back there was like "coming home."









The ultimate goal of our 2012 trip with HoHo and David was "Return to Cherokee" because I wanted to sit on that rock one more time. And I was disappointed to find the campsite occupied, although we found a really nice campsite across the lake and we had a wonderful stay on Cherokee. Then we traveled up to Gordon and Frost (still traveling down "memory lane" for me and Spartan1, but new territory for our friends) and came back via Cherokee, hoping that it would be vacant. It was not. We asked permission of the people staying there to take a couple of photos and they agreed. We had enjoyed the campsite, but mainly I was the one who loved the sitting rock. And I knew I wouldn't return again. I have been to hundreds of BWCA lakes, as well as a few in Quetico, in Algonquin, and in Temagami. I have loved most of them. But my heart will always return to Cherokee.


"

Wasn't expecting to have my eyes well up with tears today, but here I am sitting my office, wiping a few away and hoping no one walks by. We'll all be there someday and have a last trip to our favorite lake. Thanks for sharing.

A Walleye every other cast.

RoundRiver: "To me: In a word, its the experience at a given lake. That involves a lot of the things people have written. Top underlying factors for me are solitude, remoteness, and I particularly like small lakes and interconnected waterways. Multiple experiences at a place also factor in - it becomes a good friend I get to see every once in a while.
"

That last sentence in a nutshell. After visiting the same lake for 50 years, it's like visiting an old friend. The memories with family and friends are there waiting for me, every time I return.

I was reading this Loon Study on some ponds in Michigan. They determined that the same loon pairs will return to the same lakes every year, and some in their study were 35 years old. It made me realize, that perhaps I AM visiting an old friend(s). I have often joked to my wife, when a loon passes closely to us, that they are just coming over to say hi. After reading that study, perhaps it's actually true. I have to wonder if the same set of loons have lived there this whole time, and considering how little traffic that particular lake gets, maybe they Do recognize us. It's a stretch, but I like to think so.

There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers (although I didn't see them last time, so I worry trappers got them), and the resident snapping turtle. We had always called him Sammy. But turns out Sammy is actually a girl. On a recent trip, we heard noise behind the tent, and soon discovered that Sammy was back there laying eggs.

Our last trip there, we didn't get the campsite, as someone was there on their honeymoon. That made us smile, as that's where my wife and I spent our honeymoon.

analyzer - that’s just beautiful all the way around!

Some great perspectives from everyone… Spartan2, Analyzer, and Roundriver resonate the most with me…but really this thread was much more than I expected from everyone. Very enjoyable.

Thanks!!!

T

I could never pick a favorite out of the lakes I've visited...and I haven't even visited near as many as most of you. They're usually all pretty cool in their own way.

I've got my favorite lake in my head though...

You get there via a rugged but not impassable 200 rod portage. Emerge to a beach landing with enough room to load 3 canoes. The lake is large enough to provide mystery about what's around the corner, but not so large that it takes too long to paddle across or becomes a roaring sea with any 15mph gust.

It has 2 campsites...one glorious, spacious, scenic and perfectly suited campsite with a 270 degree view, and one terrible one no one would want to stay at. There are 3 smallish islands on the lake. The western bank is mostly rocky with some large cliffs and palisades and some faint pictographs. The eastern bank is more gradual and beachy.

There's a rushing stream that empties into the lake in one bay, with a portage nearby that follows that stream to the next lake.

The fish on this lake are various and hungry and bite whatever you throw at them. Not every cast, but enough to keep you well entertained and well fed.


Can anyone point me to my lake?

I'm intrigued, treehorn - but I can't find this lake to save my life! Can you at least say if it's in the BWCA or Q? :)

technically_rugged: "I'm intrigued, treehorn - but I can't find this lake to save my life! Can you at least say if it's in the BWCA or Q? :)"

My read was it's a hypothetical lake. He's got the perfect lake in mind and hoping someone can point him to it. Lakes that immediately to mind and hit most of the requirements would be Davis or Stuart.

Speckled: "

technically_rugged: "I'm intrigued, treehorn - but I can't find this lake to save my life! Can you at least say if it's in the BWCA or Q? :)"

My read was it's a hypothetical lake. He's got the perfect lake in mind and hoping someone can point him to it. Lakes that immediately to mind and hit most of the requirements would be Davis or Stuart."

This is correct...totally hypothetical.

I should add that the lake has lots of moose, and bears that would never think of raiding a campsite.

Speckled: "

technically_rugged: "I'm intrigued, treehorn - but I can't find this lake to save my life! Can you at least say if it's in the BWCA or Q? :)"

My read was it's a hypothetical lake. He's got the perfect lake in mind and hoping someone can point him to it. Lakes that immediately to mind and hit most of the requirements would be Davis or Stuart."

I sort of read it that way as well, but I guess overlooked the part about not being able to pick a favorite.

If that's the case, I'd probably point to Heritage, Davis, Gijikiki, Makwa, Indiana...? Like I said, I didn't find anything that met all of those requirements, lol.

analyzer: "

RoundRiver: "To me: In a word, its the experience at a given lake. That involves a lot of the things people have written. Top underlying factors for me are solitude, remoteness, and I particularly like small lakes and interconnected waterways. Multiple experiences at a place also factor in - it becomes a good friend I get to see every once in a while.
"

That last sentence in a nutshell. After visiting the same lake for 50 years, it's like visiting an old friend. The memories with family and friends are there waiting for me, every time I return.


I was reading this Loon Study on some ponds in Michigan. They determined that the same loon pairs will return to the same lakes every year, and some in their study were 35 years old. It made me realize, that perhaps I AM visiting an old friend(s). I have often joked to my wife, when a loon passes closely to us, that they are just coming over to say hi. After reading that study, perhaps it's actually true. I have to wonder if the same set of loons have lived there this whole time, and considering how little traffic that particular lake gets, maybe they Do recognize us. It's a stretch, but I like to think so.


There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers (although I didn't see them last time, so I worry trappers got them), and the resident snapping turtle. We had always called him Sammy. But turns out Sammy is actually a girl. On a recent trip, we heard noise behind the tent, and soon discovered that Sammy was back there laying eggs.


Our last trip there, we didn't get the campsite, as someone was there on their honeymoon. That made us smile, as that's where my wife and I spent our honeymoon."

Ya know, I've been to that lake so many times, it's become a part of me. Many would say it's not their favorite lake, because they can't see the lake very well from the fire grate, or they can't see the sunrise, or the sunset, or that it's t-stained water, only has about 5 or 6 feet of clarity, or that the campsite isn't level. But for me, in this particular case, it's not about any of that. It's about a relationship with the lake.

We started going there back in the mid 70's. Back then you could take a motor anywhere on sag as long as you didn' t portage. So my dad would set up a base camp near American point. We had rented a boat from Old man Blankenburg. As I understand it, he was one of the instrumental people in turning the BWCA into what it is today. He has a road named after him, just before you get to Seagul Lake Outfitters.

My dad would bring an old Johnson 10 horse, and put it on the 18 foot aluminum rental boat, and tow a couple big heavy alumacraft canoes. All of our gear went in the boat and canoes. We were always loaded very heavy. Back then, we'd go on 18 day trips, generally in August, after baseball season was over, and before school started. Two full work weeks of vacation, plus the 3 weekends, meant 18 days in the bwca for our entire 6 person family. 3 weeks was a long time to be in the bush. My poor mom spent weeks putting together a menu, and separating everything into ziplock bags. It wasn't really freeze dried stuff though. The food was heavy, so much so, that it wasn't going up into a tree. My dad made a wood cabinet, that was designed to fit in the rental boat. it was basically a pantry, with shelves and hinges. In Voyageurs you have stainless steel bear boxes, in the boundary waters, my dad had his lockable wood cupboard.

Dad's target campsite was always the farthest west campsite on American Point. When the water is down a little, it has a nice sandy beach. But it was always taken, every time we came. So plan B, was any island campsite, with a picnic table. Back then, there were a handful of campsites on SAG with picnic tables. Dad liked to camp on an Island, because he could put us in life jackets, and then turn us loose. He figured on an island, we could only get lost so far, and if he looked long enough, he'd be able to find us if necessary. And with a lifejacket, he figured we wouldn't drown.

I recall cutting enough wood the first couple days, that I'm certain it lasted the rest of the season, and maybe longer. I think he just liked to keep us busy. I'm not kidding, we would have 18" cuts of wood stacked 4' high, and perhaps 15-20' long. It was alot of wood. But then that's the memory of a young boy, and you know how it is with young kids, they always think everything is bigger than it truly is.

So we would set up this giant, heavy, canvas tent, that slept all 6 of us. I can close my eyes and smell that thing. It always had kind of a mildew smell to it, no matter how much you dried it out. Dad would cover the floor with poly. If the ground wasn't real level, I can recall our air mattresses always sliding down hill on the slippery poly, and if it rained, dad would always be waking us up, to move stuff away from the edges of the tent. For those that haven't spent any time in a canvas tent, if you touch the side walls when it's raining, they leak.

He would cover the top of the tent with a tarp, and we had this giant screen tent that he put over the picnic table, he'd wrap that in poly too. It came in handy one year, when we were camped on the South end of Englishmans Island, and it rained 16 of the 18 days. I think the water came up about 1/2 foot that trip. We had a deluge for like 4 straight days. We lived in that screen tent playing 10 point pitch, and contract rummy.

So back then, each day, if it wasn't pouring, Dad would tie a tow rope from the motor boat to the canoes, pack up the family and we would head off on day trips. Mom would pack lunch to bring with. It was usually ritz crackers with summer sausage, and trail mix. We would make day trips to Red Rock Lake, or up into Cache Bay, or down to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd bay, and into Zephyr, or across monument portage into Ottertrack, and beyond. Back then, we could motor all the way to the end of 3rd bay, now you can't take a motor west of the rocky reef just past the beginning of American point. We'd leave the motor boat at the portage, and take the two canoes across, into whatever lake we were exploring.

It was then that my relationship with Zephyr started. I fell in love with her instantly. There is a very short portage out of 3rd bay into Zephyr. I think it's marked as 13 rods, but I think that's a stretch. It can't be more than 4 or 5. I suppose that depends on how low the water is, but generally you can float a canoe through the muddy bog on the other side. That's part of what I like about Zephyr, it's the contrast of the beginning, where you think it's just some sort of shallow beaver pond, and then it opens up into a beautiful secluded little lake.






If you asked some, they would say the fishing isn't good enough, or the campsite is too buggy, or a miriad of other reasons it wouldn't suit them. But if you ask me, it's about 50 years of spending time with my family and friends. One on one time I've spent with my wife, or son. It's about these big ol' majestic pines that have to be a 100 years old, that have now fallen one by one, like my parents, and my sister. There's another widow maker that could fall any day now. Sometimes I wonder who's going to go first, that tree, or me. There's just a few left now.



If you ask me, it's about my friend. She's been good to me over the years. I look forward to seeing again. I look forward to sitting there as the sun goes down, not a ripple on the water, a couple of dragon flies buzzing about, catching dinner, and landing on my bobber. The resident beaver swims by, on his way home. My friends the loons come by to say hi, and somewhere in the distance, I hear a white throated sparrow with a familiar call. It's right then, that i'm completely decompressed, and perfectly at home. I miss my friend.







I even had a wall print done. I think It's a satellite view of sag and Quetico in the spring, about the time the snow is staring to melt. IF you look close, you can see Sag and Zephyr in the lower right corner.





My son had those last canvas ones made up for us.

technically_rugged: "

Speckled: "

technically_rugged: "I'm intrigued, treehorn - but I can't find this lake to save my life! Can you at least say if it's in the BWCA or Q? :)"

My read was it's a hypothetical lake. He's got the perfect lake in mind and hoping someone can point him to it. Lakes that immediately to mind and hit most of the requirements would be Davis or Stuart."

I sort of read it that way as well, but I guess overlooked the part about not being able to pick a favorite.


If that's the case, I'd probably point to Heritage, Davis, Gijikiki, Makwa, Indiana...? Like I said, I didn't find anything that met all of those requirements, lol."

I was thinking Makwa too. Although, I think that's just a lake trout lake. But would fit some of that description.

Several have already said this in a much more eloquent way, but to me a favorite lake is all about the memories the place elicits just by thinking about it, but especially when visiting it again.

naturboy12: "Several have already said this in a much more eloquent way, but to me a favorite lake is all about the memories the place elicits just by thinking about it, but especially when visiting it again. "

I've become so intimately familiar with my favorite lake, I can close my eyes, and I'm there. In my mind, I can paddle all the way around the perimeter, and visualize every tree that has fallen in the water, every rock that's partially submerged, each beaver hut, each little nook and cranny. I could draw you an exact outline of the lake on paper, you could put your pencil down anywhere on the lake, and I can tell you within a foot how deep it is in that spot, and what the bottom structure is like. I can tell you which trees the eagles sit in, I can tell you where you're most likely to see a moose. I can just crawl back in my mind, open a box, and remember any given trip from the last 50 years. It's a very special place to me, and the next person might simply think "meh".

Analyzer - pretty sure your favorite lake is Z, and you mention 'There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers, and the resident snapping turtle', and there is an owl on that lake that at night that we could always get to respond to our owl calls. As we would sit around the fire at night and call, the response would be faint, but eventually would make it to our camp. One year we moved from that site north to the next lake to a large camp site in the bay, and we were able to get the owl to follow us the next night with our calls.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your memories of that special lake.

plexmidwest: "Analyzer - pretty sure your favorite lake is Z, and you mention 'There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers, and the resident snapping turtle', and there is an owl on that lake that at night that we could always get to respond to our owl calls. As we would sit around the fire at night and call, the response would be faint, but eventually would make it to our camp. One year we moved from that site north to the next lake to a large camp site in the bay, and we were able to get the owl to follow us the next night with our calls.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your memories of that special lake."

Yes it is. That's probably not hard to figure out.

Yes, we've heard the owl too. I've only had one bear in camp in 50 years. Only heard wolves two years (back to back years actually). We saw a cow and it's calf for like 12 or 13 straight years. I'm sure she passed at some point. One year we saw 4 young eagles attacking something off the peninsula at the south end of the main lake. As you know, the campsite is about half a mile away, so we couldn't see what they were attacking. When we got out there, later, for our evening fishing, there was blood everywhere, and big chunks of brown fur. I'm guessing beaver, but not 100% certain. no carcass anywhere.

I didnt know you could get an owl to call back. I'll have to try that.

One year, I was fishing the north end of Mille Lacs, not far from shore. It was spring and the walleyes were off the first break. They weren't biting at the time, and someone in a nearby boat started making loon calls. He was very good. We enjoyed listening to him. To our surprise, in perhaps 30 minutes, he was able to actually call in a loon. I didn't know you could do that either. I wonder if he knew he could do that?

plexmidwest: "Analyzer - pretty sure your favorite lake is Z, and you mention 'There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers, and the resident snapping turtle', and there is an owl on that lake that at night that we could always get to respond to our owl calls. As we would sit around the fire at night and call, the response would be faint, but eventually would make it to our camp. One year we moved from that site north to the next lake to a large camp site in the bay, and we were able to get the owl to follow us the next night with our calls.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your memories of that special lake."

Unfortunately, she lost a couple big girls in a 2016 storm. The pictures in this article (not from us) is from the Z campsite. When we were last there a couple years ago, the 2 trees still bisected the campsite. The forest service hasn't cleared them yet.

http://www.boundarywatersblog.com/scary-stories-of-the-storm-in-the-bwca/

analyzer: "

plexmidwest: "Analyzer - pretty sure your favorite lake is Z, and you mention 'There is a pair of loons, a pair of nesting eagles, a pair of turkey vultures, a handful of beavers, and the resident snapping turtle', and there is an owl on that lake that at night that we could always get to respond to our owl calls. As we would sit around the fire at night and call, the response would be faint, but eventually would make it to our camp. One year we moved from that site north to the next lake to a large camp site in the bay, and we were able to get the owl to follow us the next night with our calls.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your memories of that special lake."

Yes it is. That's probably not hard to figure out.


Yes, we've heard the owl too. I've only had one bear in camp in 50 years. Only heard wolves two years (back to back years actually). We saw a cow and it's calf for like 12 or 13 straight years. I'm sure she passed at some point. One year we saw 4 young eagles attacking something off the peninsula at the south end of the main lake. As you know, the campsite is about half a mile away, so we couldn't see what they were attacking. When we got out there, later, for our evening fishing, there was blood everywhere, and big chunks of brown fur. I'm guessing beaver, but not 100% certain. no carcass anywhere.


I didnt know you could get an owl to call back. I'll have to try that.


One year, I was fishing the north end of Mille Lacs, not far from shore. It was spring and the walleyes were off the first break. They weren't biting at the time, and someone in a nearby boat started making loon calls. He was very good. We enjoyed listening to him. To our surprise, in perhaps 30 minutes, he was able to actually call in a loon. I didn't know you could do that either. I wonder if he knew he could do that?

"

who?

I've only done a few solos, and they tend to feel rushed. But, its usually my trips mates that determine a favorite lake